Leveraging DEI to Enhance Collective Creativity and Organizational Learning at Jiva Consulting

This thesis explores how diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) can support the learning organization at Jiva Consulting, a small Calgary-based firm specializing in knowledge transfer within the energy industry. Grounded in a constructivist paradigm and guided by Appreciative Inquiry methodology, the research engaged current Jiva team members through a focus group, semi-structured interviews, and a collaborative dissemination process. The inquiry was guided by the central question: How might DEI be leveraged to enhance collective creativity and support Jiva Consulting as a learning organization? Six findings emerged, highlighting the importance of intentional DEI practices, distributed leadership, psychological safety, curiosity, vulnerability, and the influence of early socialization on equity values. These findings informed a set of prioritized, participant-informed recommendations designed to integrate DEI more deeply into Jiva’s organizational strategy, team dynamics, and learning systems. Key conclusions emphasized the importance of cultural alignment, shared accountability, and reflective leadership practices in sustaining DEI momentum. The inquiry also surfaced broader personal and systemic themes, including the emotional labour of inclusion, the role of family in shaping equity values, and the complexity of hiring for difference. Through this process, DEI was affirmed not as a discrete initiative, but as a relational and evolving practice embedded in how people learn, lead, and belong together. The thesis concludes with reflections on learning as ceremony, the role of community, and the possibility that meaningful change begins not with knowing, but with curiosity and care.

Author dc:creator

• Cho, Kate

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Agger-Gupta, Niels

• School of leadership studies

Language dc:language.iso

en_US

Identifier URI

https://doi.org/10.25316/IR-20541

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:null:10613/28978